Cruising with kids

We love a good cruise, and I have been on about 8 myself, but we had never taken one with the kids! I found a good deal on a cruise for the family for the Memorial Day weekend and decided to go for it. We spent 5 days and 4 nights on a cruise ship with our two kids, my mom, sister and nephew.

The first few hours were a little shaky and made my husband and I think that this may have been a mistake. We drove 5 hours to port in Jacksonville, Florida and the kids were on the verge of a meltdown before we could make it on the ship!

Here is a major key… If you are cruising on Carnival, spend $49 on the “Faster to the Fun” program. It saved our trip at the beginning and the end. We were able to board early, walk into the port with our family and cut the long lines that had formed to check in. We were in our cabin, getting settled in within 20 minutes and we avoided the long buffet lines for lunch. At debarkation, we were held in a comfortable lounge with a light breakfast and escorted off the ship first. No lines, no wait. This is extremely important when traveling with kids. Read more about the program here: Carnival Cruise Faster to the Fun

As parents, our natural instinct is to protect our kids and extensively vet anyone who will be in charge of taking care of them while we are not around. I have heard how great these kids camps are on cruise ships from so many parents, but we have always been skeptical. Camp Carnival saved our vacation! My son is 8 years old and my 6 year old nephew joined us on the cruise. My son tends to be a complainer, Im sure that he is not the only 8 year old that does not find pleasure in doing anything that is not on “his” agenda in his head.

I signed all three kids up for the camp online before we left and crossed my fingers. We dropped the kids off at camp the first night at their dinner time and they were hooked. My husband and I ended up having a quiet night alone until after midnight. The camp offered late night glow parties, theme days, arts and crafts, dance parties and workshops. The boys spent every moment on the ship, in the kids camp. My advice for you is to let them go! It reduced our stress level and gave us time to enjoy the adults only “Serenity Deck” on the ship. I had the best naps there. The best part about Camp Carnival is that the price is already included. Read more about it here: Camp Carnival

On our day at sea, the kids were able to participate in the Green Eggs and Ham breakfast with “Dr. Seuss and Friends”. The dining room was turned into the whimsical world of Dr. Seuss and filled with fun! The menu included green eggs and ham and filet mignon for the adults. You can enjoy this experience for $5 per person. Take a look at the menu here: Green eggs and ham breakfast

The kids had such a great time and we did too. We are already planning for our next cruise with the kids!

Author: enchantedtravels

Welcome to my Travel blog! Some of you may not know that this is not my first rodeo on the blogging scene. I wrote an entertainment and lifestyle blog for an NYC based PR Firm back in 2011 before my business took off and got a little busy. I have traveled abroad and domestically at my leisure and for work since 2005 and I have many stories to share. I was first introduced to international travel by my parents. They took me along with them on a missions trip to Germany and halfway through the trip, I hopped on a bus by myself and crossed the border into France. I spent the weekend exploring Paris on my own back when solo trips were not popular. I was 25 years old with a YOLO attitude and just could not be that close to the "City of Lights" without making a visit. That is when the travel bug hit! I was recently inspired to start blogging again after my trip to Cuba, and this time, create a blog for myself. When I first started traveling on a more consistent basis and internationally, I was 25 years old, single and working full time as contract travel Occupational Therapist. I met my husband of almost ten years along the way and he said that one of the things that attracted me to him was my love for travel. He got himself a passport and we have continued to see the world since then, kids and all! View all posts by enchantedtravels